The City of Angels [Part 3]

That Saturday
Was like any other day for me,
A nice, sunny day.

The only problem with that day
Was that I had no plans,
So I went to my favorite coffee shop
That's nearby my house
To do my normal routine of
Getting a flat white and
Reading the funny papers.

I got in,
And was greeted by a friendly smile
From a not so friendly face.
Joanna.

Joanna often was quiet and somber,
Hiding behind the coffee bar,
Silently taking orders from guests
While quietly whispering how much
She hated the guts of some of them.

Usually it's Marie
Who takes my order,
But she's out on vacation
With her boyfriend in Belize.

Joanna was very chipper today,
Something I haven't seen
In a while.

"What can I get for you today?"
She asked me with the
Widest grin I've seen.

"My usual" I responded.

I then grabbed my
Flat white from the bar,
And sat down to
Start reading the funny papers.

After finishing the last comic strip,
I saw an advertisement for
The La Brea Tar Pits,
That the paleontologists there
Will be hosting an excavation event
That evening at an active pit.

This drew my attention,
Since I haven't been down to that area
In a while, so I got up,
Grabbed my black coat,
Got into my car,
And drove from the comfort of my Torrance home
All the way down to Museum Row.

Due to the congested arterial traffic
Of the 405, I unfortunately arrived
Roughly twenty minutes late.

I did see that there were
Quite a number of people
Located at the excavation site,
With many news reporters
From the Times with all of their media devices
Set up in order to document this experience.

I was feeling a bit down,
As I figured that the event
was already underway.

Nonetheless i figured that
All I missed were the introductions of
The paleontologists, and that the
Real event would be commencing
The moment I arrived.

I put my coat on and
Slowly trudged forward to the crowd.

Upon closer inspection,
I came to realize that there were
Also a large number of police officers there,
Probably so that none of these media people
Get too close to the site and then file a complaint
That they got tar on their
ridiculously expensive shoes.

Luckily there was still a seat near the front,
So I sat down,
pulled out my notebook and my pen,
And started to sketch.

I always love to sketch anything that I see,
For you'll always remember a moment best
When you draw it,
Rather than taking a photo of it.

And this was a case,
Where I will never forget
What it is that the paleontologists
Uncovered on that
Soon to be dreaded night..